Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/302559
48 May/June 2014 BizEd B B B R R N /TH I N KSTOCK (BAG); M-I MAG E PHOTOG RAPHY/TH I N KSTOCK (M E DITATE) research May/June 2014 BizEd search ROMANTIC IMAGERY IN advertis- ing can actually hurt sales, according to Lisa Cavanaugh, assistant professor at the USC Marshall School of Busi- ness in Los Angeles. Although images of couples hold- ing hands or sharing kisses might resonate with those in relationships, they can turn off those who are single. Cavanaugh conducted seven experiments, including one the week before Valentine's Day. Participants viewed electronic greeting cards— some viewed cards depicting romantic relationships, while others viewed cards depicting platonic ones. TOO OFTEN, PEOPLE stay at bad jobs or in bad relationships too long, eat too much, or hold on to losing stocks because of the time or money they've already sunk into a situation—what researchers call the "sunk-cost bias." But three researchers have found that those who practice mindfulness meditation—the act of clearing one's mind and focusing on the present moment—can overcome this bias more easily. The authors include Andrew Hafenbrack, a doctoral candidate in organizational behavior at INSEAD in Fontainebleau, France; Zoe Kinias, assistant professor of organizational behavior at INSEAD; and Sigal Barsade, professor of management at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. The group conducted experiments in which one group of participants listened to a 15-minute focused-breathing meditation. Another group heard a recording that simply asked them to think of whatever came to mind. Then both groups described their emotional response to a sunk-cost scenario. Those in the meditation group expressed less negative emotion than those in the control. "Meditation reduced how much people focused on the past and the future, [which] led to less negative emotion," says Kinias. "The reduced negative emotion then facilitated their ability to let go of sunk costs." "Debiasing the mind through meditation: mindfulness and the sunk-cost bias" appears in the February 2014 issue of Psychological Science. Romance Can Wreck Retail Meditation and the Sunk-Cost Bias Lisa Cavanaugh Next, they were asked to shop among economy, mid-range, or high-end brands of beauty products. Finally, they indicated their current relationship status. Single individuals who viewed romantic cards chose fewer high-end products than those in relationships, while those who viewed platonic cards purchased just as many high-end products as their coupled counterparts. By reminding single consumers of what they don't have, "marketers inadvertently make consumers feel undeserving—less worthy of treating and reward- ing themselves," says Cavanaugh. "Marketers may need to rethink the prevalent practice of using images of idealized relationships to sell everything from cook- ies to cameras." "Because I (don't) deserve it: how relationship reminders and deservingness influence consumer indulgence" is forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing Research.